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An Easy Way To Fix A Common Non-Compliance Issue

Certass Auditors carry out thousands of installation inspections over the year and we’re happy to say that proportionately to the number of inspections carried out, we get few non-compliances. This is testament to the quality of the contractors that are our members.

However, there is one non-compliance that crops up that could easily be avoided. “I don’t want any non-compliances, what is it?” I hear you say. The Building Regulation in question is Part L – Conservation of Fuel and Power which sets out the required thermal performance for windows and doors.

Usually the installed product does comply with Part L. The issue is that when the Auditor carries out the inspection, they need to see the evidence to prove the installed product complies; but that evidence is not always to hand.

There are two ways to prove compliance

1) Window Energy Ratings (WER):

The purpose of a Window Energy Rating is to allow one window’s energy performance to be directly compared to another under standard conditions. All replacement windows either have to be rated C or better. There are 2 ways to obtain a WER certificate:

Buy your frames and units from a supplier who is part of a WER scheme. The supplier will then supply you with a WER certificate in their name or if they are a member of the TRR corporate scheme they will be able to input your company details in the certificate.

If you want total freedom of supplier you can become a member of a WER scheme yourself and have WER labels in your own name.

2) U-Value:

Full simulation reports carried out in line with EN 10077-2,

Hot box test reports

U-value calculations carried out in accordance with EN 10077-1 provided by approved operators

Going down the U-Value route to prove compliance is not the most consumer friendly way to prove compliance as they are unlikely to be easily understand what a U-Value is, whereas consumer immediately understand he relative merits of a WER label.

The Easiest Way

By far the easiest way to comply is by providing a Window Energy Rating Certificate to your customer; this can usually be sourced from your fabricator or by joining a Window Energy Rating Scheme. As well as providing a certificate to your customer, you should also keep a copy of the WER Certificate and delivery note or invoice in the installations job file so when the Auditor requests the evidence to prove compliance you can lay your hands on it.

Call our sales team on 01292 292 095 or visit certass.co.uk for more information.